Saturday’s performance at Luton was just what the doctor ordered for Nottingham Forest, and one which was hugely important with the small matter of Derby County up next.
While Sabri Lamouchi has felt the loss of Michael Dawson and Samba Sow, Tobias Figueiredo and Ryan Yates have performed admirably.
Ryan Yates in particular was excellent at Kenilworth Road, especially when you factor in that he hasn’t played all season, coming in for just his first start since recovering from a knee injury over the summer.
He’d have been desperate to make an impression on Lamouchi, and took his chance with both hands, though given his personality and desire to succeed, you’d expect nothing else.
You can never fail to be impressed by his attitude, and you can do nothing more than grasp your opportunity when it arrives.
Hopefully he can keep his fitness levels up going into the busy festive period because he’s a wonderful addition to the squad – the more options available to the manager the better.
At the risk of using an age-old cliché, having somebody like Yates being back in the fold is a bit like a new signing.
I’ve always been an advocate of playing your strongest team in any game and that certainly applies this weekend.
There’s no doubt that the players which performed so well at Luton should be given the chance to go and replicate that on Saturday.
Only change a winning team if you really have to, and unless something has happened in training this week that we’re yet to hear about, or you’re looking to negate the threats of the opposition, so in this case, I hope the manager keeps faith with the same starting XI.
Keep the best side that you think are capable of going and winning that football match, it’s plain and simple.
The confidence will be flowing in that eleven after winning away from home, and that should be enough to carry them forward into the derby.
Ultimately, though, it’s down to the head coach.
Only he can reason why he picks the team that he does, why he makes any changes and his thinking behind them, and that’s the same with any manager at any level.
One thing is for sure, it’ll be fascinating to see the selection come 11:30am on Saturday morning.
